Drink Tea for Japan

Back in the 12th-century, a traveling monk named Esai picked up a few tea seeds while he was in China and brought them back Japan, where he taught other Zen monks how to process the tea leaves into a hot drink that would help them stay awake during long periods of concentrated meditation. Tea has endured as the beloved drink of Japan to this day.

In Japan, the phrase shaza kissa—“well, sit down and have some tea”—is common. I hope this week we can all sit down with a cup of tea, send our prayers to the Japanese people and help them begin to rebuild.